A Different Fantasy: The Sorin Chronicles

Disputes and understanding

I was awoken to the door at the front of the cave creaking open, and a loud thud on the floor. My host stood momentarily, then I heard her...begin to sniff?

"What is this." She said in a low growling voice.

I sat up in my bed and looked at the host, who was looking at the chest I had broken into. She slowly turned to look at me, her eyes filled with incomprehensible rage and malice. within a fraction of a second she set upon me, seizing me by my neck and pinning me to the wall with seemingly no effort. her face was within inches of mine, I noticed her already longer than average canines were longer now, and her eyes glowed a dull yellow with rectangular pupils similar to that of a goat. she began to speak, tightening her grip around my throat and catching my breaths in my throat, her voice was low and menacing.

"After all ive done for you...I placed trust in you...and you seek to rob me? what did you take. WHAT DID YOU TAKE??!!"

"N-nothing.." I choked out, clasping my hands around her wrist. "you...took...something...from...me.."

The anger in her eyes grew, but her grip loosened.

"I..i wanted to help you like you have helped me...I sought a way to heal my affliction within my tomes...and it worked! Just put me down and let me explain..."

She dropped me suddenly, and I fell hard to the floor on my knees with my throat singing a thousand songs of pain.

"Those tomes belong only to one tribe that I know of. Fetid rats that seek nothing but power for their own selfish interests. They conspire to destroy my kind to take our power, and have succeeded on many an occasion."

"don't you think if I was among those ranks id have waited in ambush for you to return? instead I simply healed the venom and cleaned the aftermath. you saved me, and I am forever in your debt."

The woman looked puzzled by this, the anger on her face becoming replaced by confusion.

"If you aren't one of them, how did you get the books? and how can you cast these spells?"

"my mother gave me both. Maybe my mother was one of those from that tribe, But she never did anything to bring harm to anyone even though that was what she was married into the tribe to do. See these scars? I got them when my mother did..something, im not sure what, to give me the ability to cast spells like I can. admittedly, I don't really know what im doing with them either."

The host sat down in front of the fire with a sigh.

" you should not have broken into my things regardless." she said defeatedly, "But I respect why you felt you had to. just understand that I dislike thieves, and I dislike mages even more."

We sat in silence for a time, then the host stood up and walked towards the chest. she collected the books from them, set them next to me, then sat back down by the fire.

"Maybe as an inexperienced mage, you can use the powers within those books for good. Make no mistake, I still very much dislike mages. I assumed you had gotten these books and weren't able to use them, given where you came from. with my knowledge that you are, indeed one, I expect you to repay my generousity. Come first light you will come with me to hunt, and we will give the proceeds to those in need. Maybe too we can use the magics to heal those in need of healing."

Ruina stood from where she was sitting, her rage literally cooling as plumes of steam billowed from
Her head with a slight hiss.

"I hope you aren't expecting an apology for that. While I forgive you now you still shouldn't have gone through my things.
But on the other hand, I do appreciate the the effort you put into cleaning this place up. I know that black icky stuff wasn't easy to get off."

  "H-how-" i started, but was quickly interrupted by ruina, wo had an air as if she was expecting this.
"I got a really good sense of smell." She said with a grin, tapping the tip of her nose with her finger.

"It's just one of the things I can do because of...what I am."
She paused for a moment, as if unsure how to proceed, suddenly sheepish despite her previous bravado.
"You see, There are others like me...-"
She pauses again, fidgeting with her nails.
"There used to be hundreds like me...maybe even thousands."

Sitting down at the table, She pulls a chair and raises a hand beckoning sorin to sit down.

"Come here and sit down. I'll ready some tea...we have a lot to discuss."